York man guilty of ill treatment of dogs, but not dog fighting

A York man accused of fighting pit bull dogs in January was found not guilty of dog fighting and owning animals for fighting by a jury Thursday after a trial this week at the Moss Justice Center, according to prosecutors and court records.

However, the jury did convict James Willie Rhodes, 28, of four felony counts of ill treatment of animals.

Rhodes was sentenced to three years’ probation and ordered not to have dogs during probation, prosecutors said.

Officers found the sick, dehydrated dogs in January outside a York home. They required immediate medical care. Some of the dogs had bite marks and broken teeth consistent with dog fighting, police said.

Rhodes, who denied all the charges and whose lawyers said previously that he was only trying to separate the dogs and that there were no spectators or gambling, was convicted of animal cruelty in 2012.

Charges against another suspect in the case remain pending, court records show. A third person was charged with obstruction but that charge was dropped to magistrate court.

This story was originally published December 3, 2015 at 3:35 PM with the headline "York man guilty of ill treatment of dogs, but not dog fighting."